The present disclosure relates generally to the field of vehicle airbags which provide occupant protection when deployed (e.g., during a dynamic vehicle impact). More particularly, the present disclosure relates to a method for packaging (i.e., folding and rolling) and storing a side curtain airbag in a vehicle for future deployment.
Airbags are located in vehicles to help protect occupants from injury during a dynamic vehicle impact event. A side curtain airbag can deploy and inflate, through the use of an inflator that provides gas for inflating the airbag. The inflator may use an explosive charge which causes gas to rapidly enter the inflatable regions of an airbag, to help protect at least one occupant from injury during a dynamic side-impact event. A side curtain airbag is generally stored within and deployed from the roof rail, which is the portion of a vehicle located just above the vehicle door frame and below the vehicle roof. Side curtain airbags are typically packaged through a process of folding and rolling to compact the airbag in order for it to fit within the small cross-section of the vehicle roof rail, and then after installation into the vehicle are hid behind a roof liner or headliner to improve the vehicle aesthetics. Side curtain airbags can be placed in any seat row (e.g., first, second, third) of a vehicle to deploy and to provide protection for any outboard vehicle occupant, and often a single side curtain airbag may protect multiple occupants in different seat rows.
It has been known to package side curtain airbags utilizing multiple step methods. One such method, first, folds the bottom portion of the airbag, in the inboard direction, onto itself (to form a closed U-shape); second, rolls the folded portion in the inboard direction; and third, pleats the top portion of the airbag with two Z-shaped folds. Another method, first, folds the bottom portion of the airbag, in the outboard direction, onto itself (to form a closed J-shaped fold); second, folds the J-shaped fold onto itself in the outboard direction, third rolls the airbag in the outboard direction; and fourth, pleats the top portion of the airbag with two Z-shaped folds.
These traditional airbag designs incorporate the same packaging method (i.e., the same steps of folding and rolling) along the entire length of the airbag. This means that the traditional airbag designs utilize the same packaging method to protect multiple occupants, although the interior compartment of each seat row is different. Conventional airbag designs deploy in a common trajectory for different occupants although the environment for each occupant may dictate the need to deploy along different trajectories to provide optimal protection to each occupant. Therefore it would be desirable to have a method to package an airbag which utilizes different methods for different sections of the airbag, to maximize the protection of each occupant. It would be desirable to design the deployment trajectory independently for each occupant to take into consideration the differences in the design of the window, door, pillar, and seat, as well as other vehicle components.